I am Rome (Complete)

Chapter One

"Oh, and with time to spare!" he shouted triumphantly to the late-night kitchen staff.

"Way to go, Joe!" one of the chefs remarked. "Six in one hour! We should get you a plaque or something."

Drenched in sweat and out of breath, Joe high-fived several of the cooks as he made his way to the employee lounge — a tiny area with a beat-up table, a small couch, and some lockers. One of the waitresses, April, was already back there, cashing out for the night.

"What's with all the commotion?" she asked. "I heard some people hootin' and hollerin'?"

Joe was delighted to see April and got butterflies every time he saw her, but on the outside, he played it cool. It was obvious to everyone but Joe that he was madly in love with her. Despite his best efforts to conceal his feelings, he wore his emotions on his sleeve. It was an endearing quality and in a way made April attracted to him.

"Oh, it's... nothing," he said through panting breaths.

Just then, Sean walked in with a slow sarcastic clap.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Speedy Gonzales himself," Sean said in a mocking tone. "The only delivery driver who doesn't drive. You're more of a delivery peddler, aren't you?" he joked as he walked away laughing.

Of course, Sean had a point. Delivering pizzas with a car would have been much easier, but a car wasn't a luxury Joe could afford just yet. It was tough for him to earn enough to buy a truck since he would spend his days working on his parents' farm. In lieu of payment, his parents would often tell Joe they were instilling him with a strong work ethic and providing him with three meals a day and a roof over his head.

Working at the restaurant was only meant to be a part-time gig during the busy summer, but with school starting in a few weeks, he would most likely be out of a job. Business had already slowed down considerably.

"Just ignore him," April said. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, I just need to catch my breath."

"Yo, April," Sean interrupted, "table seven is asking for their bill."

"Okay, I'll be right out," she replied. "Sorry, I have to go, but we'll chat later," she said with a sincere smile.

Joe wasn't exactly smooth around women, but figured it did not really matter in this case since April was with Sean — the nighttime manager and the owner's son. He used to be the day manager, but moved to nights so that his schedule was more aligned with April's. He would then drive her home most nights and pressured her for months before she finally agreed to go out with him. Joe had no clue what she saw in him. Sean was a few years older than Joe, but didn't act like it.

April also happened to be the sheriff's daughter — these two facts provided Joe plenty of reasons to not get involved with her. Nevertheless, her cute dimples, bubbly personality, and charm lured him in with each interaction. Nearly every time he saw her, he would have to recite the reasons in his head as a method of arriving at the forgone conclusion — April McDaniel was off limits.

Whether he knew it or not, Joe had a great presence about him. His youthful and wholesome nature warmed people's hearts. He wasn't a big city slicker who had been corrupted by the evils of the world, far from it. At seventeen, he hadn't experienced much evil at all. He was raised by honest, goodhearted, and hardworking country folk and naturally those same qualities rubbed off on him as well. He was kind and generally well liked. There was a naiveté about him that was rare and made people immediately feel comfortable around him.

"Don't get too comfortable, Joe, another order just came in," Sean said as he walked over and put his arm around April. Sean pulled her in close and kissed her on the cheek. It was an alpha move to let Joe know that April was his girl.

Joe barely had a chance to catch his breath before returning to the kitchen.

"Sean, stop, not in front of the customers," she said, annoyed with his antics. She shrugged his arm off her and left to check on her last table.

"How's the bike holding up these days, Joe?" Sean asked just to be a jerk. Joe didn't answer him; instead he took the high road and walked away.

"Don't be mean, Sean," April said, coming to Joe's defense.

"What? Come on, I'm not being mean, I was just being playful with him. Besides, he's knows I'm just joking. Right, Joe?... Joe?"

With a new delivery slip and a piping hot pizza in his hand, Joe exited the back doors of the restaurant, ready to make his final delivery of the night.

Strapping the pizza delivery bag to the back of his bike, Joe glanced over at Sean's pristine Mustang. Its shiny black paint gleamed under the streetlamp that was directly above it. Not a day went by where Joe didn't think about running his rusty handlebars across the paint, or putting a large dent in the door. Sean may not even notice the damage for a few days and would probably think someone else did it. Nevertheless, they were just dreams, he wouldn't actually do it.

Still reeling with anger and resentment, Joe tried to clear his mind from his impure thoughts. In his emotional state, he couldn't help but think about the injustices of the world. He asked himself, 'How do jerks like Sean get girls like April, and nice guys like me end up single and lonely? Ah, the world's not fair.'

"Good night, Joe," April said, interrupting his internal monologue.

"Yeah, see ya."

Joe fastened his bike lock around his body so that it hung loosely around his shoulder and draped across his torso. Now sitting on his bike, he set off calmly down the dimly lit street of the small town.

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